Cheap Trick is on the short list of foreign rockers that hold a special place in the hearts of many Japanese fans that includes the 1960′s surf-sound masters The Ventures and 80′s rockers Bon Jovi. But few acts owe so much to Japan as Cheap Trick.

The Illinois-based group–all of whose members are now over 60–got its big break in 1977 when fans in Japan were the only ones giving them a serious listen, and where singles such as “Southern Girls” and “I Want You To Want Me” became instant hits.

By the time the classic 1978 live album “Cheap Trick at Budokan” was recorded in Tokyo, Japanese media were calling them the “American Beatles.”

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